Magic Tricks
by Ravenus
Summary: Natasha goes back to Loki for another, more personal interrogation. It drives her insane that Clint is under Loki's control while the key to free her friend is right under her nose. Clint/Natasha. Rated T. COMPLETE.


**A/N:** Yesterday I have posted 2 FFs for Avengers and when a reader favs the stories I get an email. I_ NEVER_ got so many emails in such a short time XD The movie really got some fans. Haha. Thank you for reading my stories. Reviews are love ;)

I have another idea in my head. Well… to be honest it is mostly the same as "Through Your Eyes" but next time Clint will be blind. I'd love to see how he will react. But first things first. This is a short one shot about Clint and Natasha.

**Summary:** Natasha goes back to Loki for another, more personal interrogation. It drives her insane that Clint is under Loki's control while the key to free her friend is right under her nose.

**Rated** T (T as in **T**o be sure...))

**Disclaimer:** All characters in this story belong to Marvel (though if they want to donate Clint to me I wouldn't say no ;) )

**Magic Tricks**

Natasha stood in front of the cell, staring at Loki. The man stared back, his fascinating green eyes unreadable, his face a mask that mocked her. The grin on his face was so arrogant that she wanted to wipe it off with one vicious blow of her fist. After her first interrogation she came back on unofficial business, because this man knew where Clint was. Behind his face that wasn't giving away anything Loki was the key to getting back the archer. And Natasha was strong willed, she wanted to help her friend. She owed him.

The Russian agent had never been afraid to die. It came as a part of her job that her life was in danger whenever she faced an enemy. Every time she left the base for a mission she was prepared to die, nevertheless she was unafraid. But she would never get used to the thought that Clint was in danger as well. She was never prepared for the worst when it came to him. They had often faced situation in which they were closer to death than life, but they had survived every fight. Until now. Loki was an unpredictable character, he seemed to change his mind on a daily basis if not even more often and it scared her to no end that he had power over agent Barton.

"So, agent Romanoff" Loki broke the silence and came closer to the glass that separated them. "Haven't you heard enough? Is there any more you want to know?" His voice was a low drawl and she noticed – not for the first time – that he had a wonderful voice, deep, soothing and kind of hypnotic. This and his self assured attitude were what made him so alluring, but yet so dangerous. The last time she had talked to him he had lulled her into self-hatred but she wouldn't let this happen again.

"Where is Clint Barton?" She asked, her voice firm and perhaps a bit aggressive. That was just fine because he wouldn't fool her again. Loki made a show of thinking hard, his eyes turned to the ceiling, his hands behind his back. He walked closer to the class, then a few steps back. Natasha was sure that he hated to be trapped in this cell, he felt like a tiger in a too small cage.

"Ah, the one with the brave heart. I could feel it when I first saw him after my arrival. It beat so strong in his chest, yet he had no chance to defy my magic." Loki smirked. "He tried. Some minds are hard to control, but I like to be challenged and I won. I always win, agent Romanoff." He told her nothing new, these were the things Natasha assumed she would hear from him.

"Not this time, Loki." She promised. "Where have you brought him?" Her voice didn't get louder, she tried to sound calm and rational.

"Do you want to free him? Of course, you wouldn't be here if not, right?" The God walked back to the small bank in his cell, sitting down, folding his hands in his lap. He seemed calm but it was just a façade. Inside the God was fuming with rage and anger because he was trapped. "I can give you the immediate chance to free him. Right now, right here." Loki said, his smile growing wider with every word he spoke. The woman took a step back from the cell when the man inside waved a hand.

Next to Loki, standing close to the side of the bank stood Clint. His stance was sure, slightly relaxed, his feet apart, his hands behind his back. Natasha gasped, temporarily caught off guard. She hadn't expected this or seen it coming. The archer's eyes were covered with a blue layer of faint light which she guessed was Loki's magic and they were focused on some point far behind her. The man looked like himself, but the Black Widow knew that this was just an illusion, the prisoner wanted to make her weak.

"You can't fool me with your cheap magic tricks." She said and stepped to the left so that the illusion of Clint wouldn't block her view on Loki. "Get him out of here." The God gave a humorless laugh and stood up again, walking around Clint, looking him up and down, taking in every feature of the archer's handsome face. Then he took a step back, one arm in front of his chest, one hand brought to his face, like he was some designer looking at his newest creation.

"He looks real to me." He said flatly, the reached out with his hands, touching the man next to him. "Feels like he is real, too." He observed. Natasha came closer, it irritated her that Clint stood there – or seemed to stand there. She wished it was that easy.

"I know that this is just an illusion." Agent Romanoff said. Loki's eyebrows shot up.

"So you won't mind if I kill him in front of your eyes?"The question was greeted by silence. This has turned another direction than she had intended. She should have known that she wouldn't get an answer or a hint from their prisoner. She was a fool to believe that she was smarter than him when she was not. This man was more clever than anyone she had ever dealt with and it gave her the creeps. She was a spy and she had her methods to get information out of her targets but Loki was far beyond her league and she hated to admit it to herself. "Agent Romanoff?" Loki asked, waiting for her answer. Natasha pressed her lips firmly together, she wouldn't reward this charade with an answer.

Loki went closer to Clint, he grabbed the smaller man's neck and forced him back against the glass wall behind him, his grip getting harder. The illusion of the archer still looked strangely into the distance, but a strangled sound escaped his lips nevertheless. It made her weary, she wasn't sure if Loki was really able to teleport people. What if this really was Clint? No. That was what Loki intended. She wouldn't falter. "He's getting weaker, Natasha. Shall I lift my spell off him so that he will see that you don't do anything to save him from me? From his death?" She shook her head but nevertheless the blue faded from Clint's eyes and they were back to the stormy gray she was so used to. Panic rose in the man and he began to struggle, his legs forced off the floor, as Loki pulled him up with his arm. Now Natasha was sure.

"You're a liar, Loki. An illusionist, a magician who can impress and fool the audience in Vegas, but not me. This is not Clint. Give up, I don't believe you." Agent Romanoff said, her voice without a doubt or hesitation. Loki's head shot towards her, his eyes hard and for a short second she could see the surprise and rage in his green eyes, because he was angry and confused beyond belief that she had seen through his trick. With an angry movement of his arm he hauled Clint over against the glass where Natasha was standing and she instinctively took a step back. The body crashed against the glass, the neck giving a gut turning crack and blood flooding from a huge wound on the back of his head. Clint slid to the floor, lying in a strange angle in front of the red haired agent's feet. She gulped, the man looked so much like Clint and she felt tears sting in her eyes but bravely fought them back. She wasn't able to think about Clint being dead, she felt fresh fear creep into her bones, she needed to safe him.

The corpse vanished in green fog and nothing was left except the blood smeared against the glass. Loki came towards her, close to the wall, his face now angry and full of hatred. "Woman, you push your luck, it is dangerous ground you're moving on." He actually yelled at her. Now that the corpse had vanished and she had seen him die before her eyes it gave her new strength and determination.

"Tell me where he is, Loki, or I swear I will kill you with my own very hands, God, or not." Natasha yelled back at him. It took Loki off guard and within a second his face smoothed and he was his calm self again, stepped back and turned his back towards her.

"Agent Romanoff, you're fierce. I think I shall reward such a strong personality." He whispered to himself but she knew that he was only playing his role. "Your precious archer is in a warehouse. New York harbor. I guess you know it, you've both been there before." Natasha's reaction did not give away her surprise that Loki knew about their former mission that had lead them to the warehouse he was now talking about. She turned to leave but before she reached the door she heard Loki's voice again, it was barely above a whisper but it reached her. "You told me, Natasha Romanoff that it wasn't love that binds you to this man. Why were you lying to me?"

* * *

Natasha silently moved through the dark warehouse, it was cold and it seemed like no one was there. She didn't believe for one single moment that Loki had told her the truth. In fact she expected a trap. Overhead were some rails, a nice place for an archer to hide while she had nothing to hide on the floor of the abandoned warehouse. Standing in the middle of the ground floor, she looked around, tried to make out a figure or something that would give her a hint. Nothing.

After another round she nearly gave up, her shoulders slumped, but inside she was angry. She would see Loki again and this time she would go into that cell, close the door behind her so that they could fight for life or death. She wanted to have Clint back, she would not give up before he was safely back to SHIELD. Her heart pumped in her chest. She felt helpless because she couldn't do anything to free her friend from Loki. The Black Widow hated nothing more than helplessness.

When she made her way to the door, she felt, more than heard or saw, an arrow coming towards her from somewhere above her head. With one swift motion she ducked and hid herself behind some crates in a corner and looked into the direction from where the arrow had come. So Clint was up there, still under Loki's spell and he tried to kill her. Natasha Romanoff wasn't killed easily, or she would long be dead by now. And the most important thing was that she would not let Clint kill her. He would never forgive himself when he was back to normal – she refused to believe that he would forever stay Loki's obedient servant. He would go home with her today!

* * *

He was awake, but yet he wasn't, sitting somewhere in the back of his mind while he had to watch himself helplessly firing an arrow at Natasha. The sane part of him, that was not possessed by Loki wanted to stop himself but he simple wasn't able to ban the magic from his brain and so his body did not as it was told. On the outside Clint Barton may seem calm and stoic but in this very moment he was a wreck inside. He had once tried to kill Natasha and it would have killed him if he had had success. Now he would have to watch, unable to stop himself, this strange thing in his head acting in his stead.

He watched her hide behind some crates but she should have known better. His fingers turned a switch on his bow and he grabbed another arrow, took aim and shot. 'Run, Tasha!' Clint wanted to scream while he just stood there and watched the arrow fly towards the stack of crates. It exploded the instant it hit it's target. The archer stood motionless, his eyes searching for a sign of the red haired woman. His body and the foreign force in his brain hoped that it would be his body hitting the floor, but Clint, who was just merely a watcher hoped that she would run for her life.

He wanted nothing more than see her safe, even if it cost him his own life. His head ached when his consciousness tried to win back over his brain but Loki's spell wouldn't allow it and force him back like he was some sheep driven into a trap by a hungry wolf. He struggled for dominance but it hurt so much and for a second his eyes got blurry. Tasha should run for it, get out of here, his beautiful, redheaded Tasha.

Still looking down he couldn't find a trace of her and he leaned down to get a closer look from another angle. That was when something – someone – came running at him, heels clicking on the metal rail beneath swift feet. No, why did she come here, he wasn't worth it that she risked her life. He hadn't spared her life before just to kill her now. He felt tears in his eyes, what was highly unusual. Two personalities fought in his head but Clint would lose the fight. Loki was a God and Tasha's death was nearly unpreventable now. The archer lifted his bow but she was fast and clever. She knew that he needed range to shoot and so she jumped him, throwing him to the ground, the back of his head hitting the metal beneath with a violent blow.

For a few seconds he saw stars dancing in front of his eyes. Then he saw red. Natasha's cherry colored hair. As he was impassively watching their fight from a distant position in his head he marveled at her beauty. She moved swiftly, her movements graceful and efficient. Her huge advantage was that she knew his way of fighting from several hours in the gym when they had been sparring. Agent Barton wished that Tasha would kill him because otherwise Loki would kill her with his hands and the thought nearly drove him insane. With panic he realized that he was drawing an knife, his hands shaking, because a part of him wanted to prevent what he wanted to do next.

They fought for endless minutes, struggling for dominance, hurting each other until his body felt numb and he saw hematomas on her beautiful body. 'Kill me, please, please, kill me, because I cannot stop myself." The sane part of him repeated over and over in his head but he had long before realized that she fought to knock him out, not kill him, a bad mistake that might cost her precious life in the end.

Natasha kicked at him – hard, but the pain didn't even register – and he fell back against the banister, his head hitting the metal with another loud noise. He shook his head and realized two things: he had control over his body again and the banister gave broke from the hard impact of his body and before he could regain all his senses he fell down, his eyes – now back to their normal color – looking desperately at the red haired woman. She had realized that Clint was back but the small spark of hope was instantly replaced by a new fear, when she saw him falling. The Black Widow stretched out her arms but she was too late, his body hit the floor, his back cracking when he fell onto his quiver.

Damn, this was bad. He never had had a hangover that bead what he was feeling now: headache and pain that had been tuned out until now and was just washing over him with all its might. With a stifled scream he closed his eyes and heard Natasha call his name. He should give her a sign that he was alive, so he held up his arm, giving her a thumps up. Groaning he rolled onto his side, maybe he had sometimes in the progress lost consciousness because when he opened his eyes again, agent Romanoff knelt by his side, one hand gently on his hurting shoulder.

"I'm back, Tasha." He whispered and coughed. Tasha's eyes searched his face, she was panting hard from their fighting, her hair a mess and sweat all over her face and most likely the rest of her body, too. She has never been more beautiful than in this very moment.

"Clint." She whispered hoarsely, happiness and concern both in her eyes. "Can you move? You fell on your back so hard, I'm sorry, I…" He held up a hand to silence her and grabbed her shoulders, pulling her down on top of him, hugging her close to his bruised body. At first she was surprised and wanted to struggle free, but when he circled her with his strong arms she gave up and let her head rest on his shoulder.

"Everything is fine, my beautiful Natasha." He whispered into her hair while he gently played with the strands. All his fears and anger fell from him in this very second and all that was left was what he felt for her. With a surprisingly swift movement for a hurt man he rolled them over so that he lay on top of the cherry haired woman and looked down at her face, one hand in her hair, the other caressing her pale face. "I was so scared that I would kill you." He whispered, lost in her deep blue eyes.

She was used to him getting close, they were friends after all, but he had never been this close before, the man had never called her beautiful, he had never touched her with such gentle fingers. And he was trembling madly, his body weak but yet so strong while he just looked down at her. His eyes searched hers for another endless moment before his lips came down and gently brushed over hers for the sweetest kiss she had ever felt. Natasha was too shocked to respond at first – happy, but thrown off guard – but when Clint looked up again, feeling her hesitation she followed him to press their lips together gain in a deeper kiss, her arms circling his neck and pulling him close to her body.

When they finally came apart for air she smiled. It was the most heartfelt smile he had ever seen on her face and it made him happy and proud. This woman had long been his, but only now he had the courage to show her how much he loved her. He couldn't resist, he leaned down again, to kiss her again and again, their arms around each other, their bodies desperately seeking contact.

Clint wasn't able to stop and Natasha did nothing to hold him back. On the contrary, she helped him to get rid of his quiver that was still on his back and with greedy, shaking fingers she opened the front of his uniform to let her fingers slide over his chest. But the man above her hissed in pain when she touched the bruises she herself had given him and snapped back to reality. "Stop, Clint." She whispered between two kisses and with lots of self control and disappointment in his eyes, he looked at her. It took a great deal of will but when she didn't want this, he wouldn't do this. "You're hurt, we have to bring you back, so Banner can check on your bruises." Natasha said, her voice full of worries.

"It can wait." Clint breathed, barely audible. The Black Widow shook her head.

"No. No, I will not risk to lose you again because I ignored some serious injuries." She muttered and struggled to get up from underneath him. When he didn't let her go, she got angry. "Get off me, Clint." Hawkeye smirked. "Please!" She was serious, he noticed, she deeply cared for him and it flattered him. He sat up, wincing, when his body shifted. Maybe she was right, some ribs felt broken and he was barely able to breathe.

"But you will make up for this, Tasha, I swear." Now it was her turn to smile when she heard the lust in his words.

"Clint?"

"Yes, Tasha?"

"I love you."

* * *

FIN

* * *

Please review :) Thank you!


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